All Forum Posts by: Samuel Pavlovcik

@Jonathan Klemm thanks for the mention

@Glen Fernandes there are some options available for parking relief; that being said, there are some initial questions which would be helpful to have answered in order to provide the best asnwer to your question.

1) How many units is the property currently?

Note: Per code, you would be required to provide 2 parking spaces for a single-family residence, or 1 parking space per unit for a multi-unit. That being said, this property would be grandfathered in for a "non-conforming condition" of providing 0 parking spaces. If you are Adding a new unit to the building, you would need to add 1 parking space for the unit. I.E. if it is is 2-unit building and you are adding a 3rd unit, you would need to provide 1 new parking space. If it is a single-family home and you are adding 2 units, then you would need to provide 2 new parking spaces.

2) Size of Lot, Zone, Etc.

There is another concern for the requirement to provide "Rear Yard Open Space" (RYOS). Depending on the zoning designation and the number of units, there will be varying requirements for the overall sq.ft. and minimum dimension of the space required to be provided. Your parking cannot reduce the required RYOS, and when you are adding additional units, you may end up being required to provide More RYOS, which could further take away from available parking.

As far as exceptions to reducing parking:

- There was a "Transit Orientated Developmnent" Ordinance that was expanded as the "Connected Communities Ordinance" in 07/22 for which some properties could also qualify for parking reduction dependent on Zoning Designation

- There are Administrative Adjustments (Much easier & faster than a Zoning Variation) available to reduce the required parking spaces by up to 100% in some cases

Additional Info:
- The minimum size for a parking space would be 8' wide x 18' deep. Based on the size/dimensions you provided above, you could potentially have room for up to 2 parking spaces

- When adding new units to an existing building, the project Would Not qualify for the expedited "Self-Certified" permit review process

- When adding new units to existing buildings, those spaces must be 100% brought up to current codes. Unlike remodeling work where you can get away with not opening walls in areas that are not within the scope of work and "whatever is existing can remain".

- Due to your unique narrow lot condition you could run into a few other concerns. For example, while you appear to have a vacant lot next to your property; it will be irrelevant when considering the Natural Light and Ventilation required to be provided to the space, as the minimum 3' clear distance is measured to the property line, not the neighboring structure. This means that unless you own the vacant lot next door, or obtain a "Right of way" from them, you would be restricted from counting any windows along that side to comply with "Natural Light and Ventilation" concerns.

@David Zimmerman, I'm a little late to this post, but I'm sure you've received some good feedback from other members.

You mentioned your inexperience with the process and there are definitely a few "Big ticket" items when considering a basement unit in Chicago. I am not going to list everything here, but a few may include:

- Permit Review Process: If you are "Adding" a unit to the existing building, or "replacing" a previously existing Illegal unit, you may have some retrictions when it comes to the Zoning Department, and you would be excluded from pursuing the "Self-Certified" permit review process which means your permit turnaround time can easily extend from 3-6 weeks to 3-6 months!

- Ceiling Height: 7'-0" would be the minimum permitted ceiling height for "Habitable space" within a R-5 Occupancy (1-3 Unit) residential building. If you have less than this, you could be looking at a costly dig-down; especially if you have more than a couple of inches to go!

- Water Service: If you are adding new plumbing fixtures, it is likely that the existing water service will need to be upgraded, as the existing Service line is likely undersized.

- Electrical Meters: Even if you already have 3 meters/panels for your 3 Units, you will end up needing to add a 4th Meter/panel as a "Common" even if you are only doing work within the basement unit

- Light and Vent: Habitable spaces will need to meet the requirements for Natural Light and Ventilation. This could mean you may need to add more windows, or even reconfigure the existing layout to move the bedrooms to a side that is farther from the property line!

Hope this helps in your preparation/consideration prior to diving into the full basement reno!

@Mark Ainley and @Jonathan Klemm, thanks for the Mention.
@Asim Purses, I've definitely been hearing chatter regarding the expansion/removal of area limitations for the ADU Program; and even that a modified proposal was being presented to City Hall. That being said, there is no guarantee of when, or if, this will ever happen.

In regards to your question for adding a unit outside the ADU Pilot Areas; there are a few opportunities; however, they tend to be more streneous than the ADU Pilot Program when it comes to a Department of Zoning standpoint.

1) Verify the Existing lot Zoning & Area. I have had quite a few projects that actually Qualify to add an additional unit "By Right" i.e. based on the current Zoning designation and lot area. In these cases, even by adding a unit to the existing building, you are "Within COmpliance" of the Zoning Ordinance, and therefore there is no restriction.

2) Variation: If the lot area is Close to what would be required (within 90%) you could qualify to pursue a Zoning Variation in order to permit the extra unit to be added. You would still need to hire a Zoning Attorney and go through the full Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) Process; however, if you have the Alderman's support and no opposition for the neighbors/community; you may have a good case to argue.

3) Map Amendment: This is the case that @Jonathan Klemmhad mentioned, where you are actually "Changing" the zoning designation of your specific lot in order to be permitted to add additional units. This tends to be a larger "Ask" from the ZBA; however, your Zoning Attorney can frequently submit and process the request, even without providing Architectural drawings.

Bonus) Exemptions: There are a few "Exemptions" within the ordinance (17-2-0303-B) which can (occasionally) play a role in finding hidden opportunities. One I have had specific success with is in the RS-3 District, where there is an exemption which would permit you to construct a 2-Unit building instead of a Single Family Residence if you have a lot area of at least 3,000 sq.ft. and if you can prove that 60% or more lots fronting on the same side of the street between the two nearest intersecting streets have been lawfully improved with buildings containing more than one dwelling unit. We used this Exemption to tear down (2) single family homes which were both on extra wide 37.5' lots; then divide the lots into (3) 25' wide lots, then construct (3) 2-Unit buildings in place of the previously existing (2) single-family homes; therfore getting 6-Units out of 2 within an otherwise "Single-family" Zone!

@Brie Schmidt this is a great question, as many people are aware that the City has the ADU Pilot Program to allow thus type of unit; however, do not understand what it means for units which were already existing but not "Legally recognized".

Essentially, the City see it this way, If you have an existing Unit that was built out/Added to the building Without a Permit, then it is an Illegal Dwelling Unit.

The way that the ADU Pilot Program Helps in this case is the fact that these units were commonly added into buildings which otherwise would not have been permitted by the Zoning Ordinances, and therefore would have required some form of Zoning Variation or Map Amendment in order for a unit like this to be permitted. The ADU Pilot Program allows a path for these units to be "Legally Added" without the Zoning Relief portion.

That being said, it Does Nothing when it comes to the legalization of the Existing illegal unit, or for the building department. In the end, this means that while you may receive the "ADU Approval" this means you received "Approval" to "Legally Add a unit". The Only way to Legally add a unit is to provide plans and obtain a building permit to construct the unit. If the work has already been done, it is assumed that that work was Illegally done and technically should be completedly removed and redone, as the City does not know that any of the work was done by Licensed contractors, and the work was not inspected. Additionally, unlike during remodeling where only the areas you expose during your work need to be brought up to code, since the Permit is for a "New Unit" 100% of the "work compelted" within that unit needs to be up to Current building code. This means framing, windows(Natural light and ventilation), plumbing, electrical, HVAC, etc. Additionally this means that the systems which are shared with the whole building (Water service, electrical service, etc) also need to be Code Compliant to provide for the new unit.

Hope this helps

@Paul De Luca thanks for the mention

@Shawn Adderly, as mentioned by a few other BP members, the first concern from the City's perspectove in terms of creating a 3rd unit within the building is the Zoning Ordinances for what can be permitted in therms of the number of units for your lot.

I don't believe any of the Belmont Craigin neighborhood is within any of the ADU Pilor Areas (which would have been the easiest case). Additionally, the majority of the neighborhood is Zoned RS-2 or RS-3 which are single-family residential designations. In which if you have a legally existing multi-unit residence it is fine for it to remain; however, you could not add any more units to the existing building and therefore bring it "further out of compliance".

I'd be happy to dig a bit deeper into it for you to verify based on the actual property address; however, unless your lot happens to already be designated with a diferent Zone (like RT-4) I would say this is unlikely without obtaining some form of Zoning Variation or Zoning Map Amendment.

You can check the Zoning Designation & some other general information for your lot Here.

@Jonathan Klemm as always, thanks for the mention

@Yesenia Valdez as you can see, theres a lot of concern with the overall expense of adding a unit; which is commonly much hire than many investors realize when you factor in some of the key "High cost" items which are common to run into, expecially within the city, which may include: Digging down the basement, increasing the water service, upgrading the electrical service and replacing/adding electrical panels, relocating/rerouting hvac systems, etc.

All of that being said, it is definitely still a decision to be made based on an individual property basis as there are many factors that could effect whether or not it would be worth it.

One thing I would recommend to start would just be to verify whether or not this is going to be a feasible request based on the City's Zoning Ordinances! The ADU Pilot Program was previously mentioned, which is commonly a good way to make this happen; however, there may be other opportunities as well depending on the lot size and zoning designation. I'd be happy to get on a call together to take a quick look at the property with you and let you know what the process would look like from a Zoning and Building Permit perspective, as this can likely affect your decision.

@Jodi Taylor, you are correct. None of the ADU Pilot Areas extend to the Austin Neighborhood...

@John Warren thanks for the mention

@Jodi Taylor there is a common misuse/misinterpretation of what the term "non-conforming" means. With the City of Chicago, a building may already exist with more units than would otherwise be allowed by the zoning ordinance. As long as these units are recognized by the City as Legal Units, they would be considereed as "Legally Existing, nonconforming." That being said, if the building was already a 4 unit building and there were 2 additional units which were added into the basement which were not recognized as Lagal Units by the city, and were installed Without obtaining buolding permits; these units would be considered as "Illegal Units".

That being said, just because you have a "nonconforming" building does not mean that you definitely cannot Legally add additional units. As previously mentioned, the City of Chicago has an "ADU Pilot Program" which could allow for these units to be added Legally; however, this only applies to specifically designated areas in the City. Additionally, with an existing 4 unit residential building, you would only be allowed to add 1 ADU Conversion unit in accorance with the program. Beyond that, a Zoning Variation or Zoning Map Amendment may be other options.

Legally adding residential units to a building would require full architectural drawings and a permit be obtained via the City of Chicago Standard plan Review process.

I will let other members of this forum continue to add notes and concerns regarding constucting "Illegally Added" units.

@John Warren thanks for the mention

@Mark Goodman I was curious to hear how you had determined that the building is Zoned for 6 Units. You had noted the building sits on two lots, assuming they are (2) standard 25' x 125' lots = 6,250 sq.ft. which means you would need to have RT-4 Zoning (1,000 sq.ft. of Lot area per Unit) in order to have 6 Units by right...

Additionally, you had noted the lack of alley access and parking which can definitely cause concern with adding residential units without adding parking unless it is in one of the TOD areas.

@Biib Salmaas Based on the info you provided I'd say you have a good chance for converting back to a 2-Unit.

1st and foremost you can try using the following link to check the Chicago Building Department Records and see if you can find any record of the property "Legally" being converted from a 2-unit to a single-family (via a building permit) or if any permit records indicate the number of units on them.

As you had previously mentioned, the Certificate of Zoning Compliance Is definitely the best way to truly confirm how many legally existing units the building has, as recognized by the City. Even if it is currently built out as a single-family, if the Zoning Cert. comes back showing multiple units, then you would have an even easier time obtaining the building permit to show the remodeling for the 2 units.

As far as the RS-3 Zone is concerned, you are "by right" permitted to have 1 residential unit for every 2,500 sq.ft. of Lot Area. this means on a standard 25' x 125' lot (3,125 sq.ft.) you are only alotted 1 residential unit, and you would need an oversized lot at a minimum of 5,000 sq.ft. in order to have 2-Units.

That being said, the RS-3 District Does allow for some exceptions!

You had mentioned that 60% + of the neighboting lots are currently multi-unit buildings, which is very helpful information.

In accordance with the Chicago Zoning Ordinance 17-2-0303-B: "In the RS3 district the minimum lot area per dwelling unit may be reduced to 1,500 square feet when 60% or more of the zoning lots fronting on the same side of the street between the two nearest intersecting streets have been lawfully improved with buildings containing more than one dwelling unit. This exemption will only allow for the establishment of a two unit building."

There's obviously a lot at play here, and this is something that could typically be difficult to achieve; however, based on the information provided to this point, it sounds like you have a few good opportunitites.

My advise:

- Definitely get that Certificate of Zoning Compliance (your Attorney may be able to handle it for you instead of waiting on the seller).

- If it comes back as a Legally existing single-family residence, obtain a Zoning Opinion Letter in order to fully verify if you could change it back to a 2-unit residence based on the 17-2-0303-B Exemption.

Hope this helps! Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions. We can do more research with the actual property address...